Ex-Heroes

Stealth. Gorgon. Regenerator. Cerberus. Zzzap. The Mighty Dragon. They were heroes. Vigilantes. Crusaders for justice, using their superhuman abilites to make Los Angeles a better place. Then the plague of living death spread around the globe. Despite the best efforts of the superheroes, the police, and the military, the hungry corpses rose up and overwhelmed the country. The population was decimated, heroes fell, and the city of angels was left a desolate zombie wasteland like so many others.

Shockingly Good

The only reason I listened to this book is because I stumbled across '14', one of Clines' more recent works. I absolutely adored that. Then I read t..Show More »he summary here and was... disheartened. I love superheroes. I love zombies. I couldn't imagine the two mixed. So I put this on the way, way, waaaaay back burner until I listened to The Fold, his most recent book, and became an official Clines fan boy. So, I waded into Ex-Heroes with an open mind and heart.

I was not disappointed. Action from start to finish. Brilliant pace. Insanely believable reactions and actions, factoring in the book's setting. Beautifully developed characters that I can't wait to see grow even further in the future books (thank god for three more in my queue).

I'm also not a huge fan of multi-narrator books, but it worked really well in this situation. Great performances by both, though Snyder took the primary and did most of the narration.

For those of you reading these reviews and seeing a bunch of us who, probably like you, were very hesitant to listen because of the implausible plot devices... just trust us. If you want great writing and story, mixed in with just the right amount of adult content and "oh wow, that's cool" factor; this is the book for you. Don't get me wrong, it's entertainment, not literature... but boy is it entertaining. Better than a movie (though I can't believe this hasn't been made yet).

Ex-Patriots

It’s been two years since the world ended. Two years since the dead rose and the plague of ex-humanity decimated mankind. For most of that time, the superhero called St. George, formerly known to the world as the Mighty Dragon, has protected the people of Los Angeles at their film-studio-turned-fortress, The Mount. Together with his fellow heroes, he’s tried to give the survivors hope and something like a real life. But the swollen population of The Mount is becoming harder and harder to sustain....

Great Once More

I really enjoyed this sequel to Ex-Heroes. While a big chunk of the plot is stuff we have all heard before, Clines is clearly very aware of this and ..Show More »makes tongue in cheek references the whole time. For the geeky "gee, cool" side of me, this was great. If you don't have a lot of background in sci-fi movies or general geek culture a big chunk of the references will go un-noticed.

While there were a number of derivative aspects to the story, it also felt extremely original and new somehow. Maybe it was the continuing juxtaposition of superheroes and zombies, maybe just the writing style/tone. Regardless, it was extremely entertaining.

I do agree with another reviewer who felt the storyline ended rather abruptly- however since I don't have to wait a year for the next installment, I'm completely OK with this. It would have irritated me in 2012. Clines was clearly setting up book three throughout this installment. I also saw the ending coming from a mile away, but that didn't take away from the entertainment value.

Ex-Communication

In the years since the wave of living death swept the globe, St George and his fellow heroes haven't just kept Los Angeles' last humans alive - they’ve created a real community, a bustling town that's spreading beyond its original walls and swelling with new refugees. But now one of the heroes, perhaps the most powerful among them, seems to be losing his mind. The implacable enemy known as Legion has found terrifying new ways of using zombies as pawns in his attacks.

Corpse Girl for the win!

You really should read the first 2 books in this series before you pick up Ex-Communication. Many of the occurrences in this book are tied to the even..Show More »ts and actions that took place in the first 2 books and having that context is necessary. Besides, if you like the first 2 books then you’ll be reading/listening to this one in no time at all. All of the Heroes will seem like old friends by the time you get here and you’ll be glad to spend more time with them.

Similar to the start of Book 2, Ex-Communication reveals that the Heroes have been busy in between books. The wall around The Mount has been extended and the relationships between the Heroes have grown as well. Legion is getting smarter and his ability to control the zombie horde is advancing. In addition to adding a new Hero to the mix (Corpse Girl) Peter Clines provides more insight and background to events from the first 2 books. Amongst other things, we learn why Zzzap has been talking to himself and why Dr. Sorensen insisted his daughter wasn’t dead.

It started with Super-Heroes and Zombies, then came the Super-Soldiers, and now Demons and Sorcery emerge to take center stage with a little nano-technology thrown in for good measure. At first I wasn’t thrilled that Clines went in this direction, but after a while I got over it and just went along for the ride. This is more comic book style storytelling delivered in the same “Then” and “Now” format we are used to. The cast of narrators is once again outstanding, so if you are a fan of the series then you will gobble this up quickly.

Ex-Purgatory

When he’s awake, George Bailey is just an ordinary man. Five days a week he coaxes his old Hyundai to life, curses the Los Angeles traffic, and clocks in at his job as a handyman at the local college. But when he sleeps, George dreams of something more. George dreams of flying. He dreams of fighting monsters. He dreams of a man made of pure lightning, an armored robot, a giant in an army uniform, a beautiful woman who moves like a ninja.

Didn't Expect This!!

If you here you know how these books usually start, there is a Then and Now through the book and you get to know one of the heroes' past. But here it..Show More »s different.

When you start this book you will be a bit confused, I certainly was, and I couldn't understand what was happening (which is great, its boring when you figure it out early in the book) and when i got to the point where all looked clear... well.. you still get shocked afterwards.

Ex-Purgatory was written in a different approach and actually that was one of its pros, its ending was good and twists are always there...

Cons: Narrator.. Jay Snyder is a good narrator, and he did a good job as always.... But where are the others?? I liked the combo of narrators as in the past books... it doesn't always work when you have different narrators for a single book, but in this series it works well... so ya guys, bring them back in the next book.